Here's another example of a local council and MP getting behind campaigners, this time on academies. It contrasts with Brent Council's failure to really get behind anti-academisation campaigners in the case of The Village School.
This is a statement from the school's NEU members received via the Anti Academies Alliance:
"Here’s some good news. We have managed to stop Southfield Primary School from becoming an academy!
After hearing that our governors wanted to join the Knowledge Schools
Trust, through the process of academisation, unhappy NEU members decided
to make a stand. We believe in education for all, not just the chosen
few. So we rallied together to fight this decision. We fought back! We
had a ballot, met with parents and decided we were prepared to strike to
save our children’s education. We wanted to stay part of Ealing, it is a
supportive borough.
We wouldn’t have achieved this if we hadn’t stuck together and would like to thank Stefan Simms and the NEU for their support.
We would also like to thanks Julian Bell Leader of Ealing Council, Cllr Yvonne Johnson and Rupa Huq MP for standing with us."
Since
Friday's cyber attack, staff across the Trust have been working tirelessly to
ensure patients are cared for safely.
We
identified the virus at 12.45pm on Friday (12 May) in three PCs and two
servers. As soon as the virus was identified we took immediate action to
protect our systems from any data loss and further corruption.
As
a precaution we shut down a number of IT systems and some services are
currently using paper-based systems. It is the precautionary measures we have
taken that have caused most disruption, not the virus itself.
We
continue to work with NHS Digital and will begin to switch our IT systems back
on when we feel it is safe to do so.
In
the meantime we are asking the public to help our staff and visit our emergency
departments for serious and life-threatening injuries and conditions only.
Please consider the alternatives, such as visiting your local walk-in centre,
pharmacy or calling 111 for minor injuries and advice. This will help relieve
pressure on our services.
Advice
for patients
Patients
are asked to attend their appointment or operation as planned over the coming
days, unless they have been contacted and told not to attend. If patients or
their loved ones need to get in touch about their appointment or operation,
please call (instead of email) our main hospital switchboards:
Central
Middlesex Hospital: 0208 965 5733
Ealing Hospital:
0208 967 5000
Northwick
Park and St. Mark's hospitals: 0208 864 3232
We
apologise for any delays and cancellations that patients will experience and we
thank you for your continued patience and cooperation as we work to resolve
these issues.
Since Friday's cyber attack, staff across the Trust have been working tirelessly to ensure patients are cared for safely.
We identified the virus at 12.45pm on Friday (12 May) in three PCs
and two servers. As soon as the virus was identified we took immediate
action to protect our systems from any data loss and further corruption.
As a precaution we shut down a number of IT systems and some services
are currently using paper-based systems. It is the precautionary
measures we have taken that have caused most disruption, not the virus
itself.
We continue to work with NHS Digital and will begin to switch our IT systems back on when we feel it is safe to do so.
In the meantime we are asking the public to help our staff and visit
our emergency departments for serious and life-threatening injuries and
conditions only. Please consider the alternatives, such as visiting your
local walk-in centre, pharmacy or calling 111 for minor injuries and
advice. This will help relieve pressure on our services. Advice for patients
Patients are asked to attend their appointment or operation as
planned over the coming days, unless they have been contacted and told
not to attend. If patients or their loved ones need to get in touch
about their appointment or operation, please call (instead of email) our
main hospital switchboards:
Central Middlesex Hospital: 0208 965 5733
Ealing Hospital: 0208 967 5000
Northwick Park and St. Mark's hospitals: 0208 864 3232
We apologise for any delays and cancellations that patients will
experience and we thank you for your continued patience and cooperation
as we work to resolve these issues.
- See more at:
http://www.lnwh.nhs.uk/about-us/news-and-media/latest-news/cyber-attack-information-for-patients/#sthash.fVPMmwLk.dpuf
Since Friday's cyber attack, staff across the Trust have been working tirelessly to ensure patients are cared for safely.
We identified the virus at 12.45pm on Friday (12 May) in three PCs
and two servers. As soon as the virus was identified we took immediate
action to protect our systems from any data loss and further corruption.
As a precaution we shut down a number of IT systems and some services
are currently using paper-based systems. It is the precautionary
measures we have taken that have caused most disruption, not the virus
itself.
We continue to work with NHS Digital and will begin to switch our IT systems back on when we feel it is safe to do so.
In the meantime we are asking the public to help our staff and visit
our emergency departments for serious and life-threatening injuries and
conditions only. Please consider the alternatives, such as visiting your
local walk-in centre, pharmacy or calling 111 for minor injuries and
advice. This will help relieve pressure on our services. Advice for patients
Patients are asked to attend their appointment or operation as
planned over the coming days, unless they have been contacted and told
not to attend. If patients or their loved ones need to get in touch
about their appointment or operation, please call (instead of email) our
main hospital switchboards:
Central Middlesex Hospital: 0208 965 5733
Ealing Hospital: 0208 967 5000
Northwick Park and St. Mark's hospitals: 0208 864 3232
We apologise for any delays and cancellations that patients will
experience and we thank you for your continued patience and cooperation
as we work to resolve these issues.
- See more at:
http://www.lnwh.nhs.uk/about-us/news-and-media/latest-news/cyber-attack-information-for-patients/#sthash.fVPMmwLk.dpuf
Since Friday's cyber attack, staff across the Trust have been working tirelessly to ensure patients are cared for safely.
We identified the virus at 12.45pm on Friday (12 May) in three PCs
and two servers. As soon as the virus was identified we took immediate
action to protect our systems from any data loss and further corruption.
As a precaution we shut down a number of IT systems and some services
are currently using paper-based systems. It is the precautionary
measures we have taken that have caused most disruption, not the virus
itself.
We continue to work with NHS Digital and will begin to switch our IT systems back on when we feel it is safe to do so.
In the meantime we are asking the public to help our staff and visit
our emergency departments for serious and life-threatening injuries and
conditions only. Please consider the alternatives, such as visiting your
local walk-in centre, pharmacy or calling 111 for minor injuries and
advice. This will help relieve pressure on our services. Advice for patients
Patients are asked to attend their appointment or operation as
planned over the coming days, unless they have been contacted and told
not to attend. If patients or their loved ones need to get in touch
about their appointment or operation, please call (instead of email) our
main hospital switchboards:
Central Middlesex Hospital: 0208 965 5733
Ealing Hospital: 0208 967 5000
Northwick Park and St. Mark's hospitals: 0208 864 3232
We apologise for any delays and cancellations that patients will
experience and we thank you for your continued patience and cooperation
as we work to resolve these issues.
- See more at:
http://www.lnwh.nhs.uk/about-us/news-and-media/latest-news/cyber-attack-information-for-patients/#sthash.fVPMmwLk.dpuf
At a crowded meeting in Harlesden, the Labour Party in Brent Central condemned the cuts being made to the NHS services that people in Brent depend on. Labour Party members voted unanimously to call for Brent Council to reject the plans drawn up by NHS officials to reduce hospital services across northwest London. The motion requested that the Council's Labour Leader, Cllr Muhammed Butt discontinues any negotiations over the Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP) and any other proposed cuts to the NHS budget. The meeting also called for unity with Hammersmith and Ealing Councils who have also opposed STP.
NHS bosses across England are required by the Department of Health to produce these plans, known as “Sustainability and Transformation Plans” or STPs. The plans rest on the idea that large numbers of patients could be looked after more cheaply in the community instead of in hospitals. However, doctors at the meeting said that GPs and other community services are already stretched to breaking point and would not get enough extra staff or money to take on the additional work this would involve.
The plans include closing the 24/7 A&E Departments at Charing Cross Hospital and Ealing Hospital, turning them into Urgent Care Centres.
In 2014, when Central Middlesex Hospital had its A&E Department downgraded to an Urgent Care Centre, Northwick Park Hospital was supposed to take on all the extra emergency patients. Instead patients waited far longer to be seen because Northwick Park was overwhelmed by the needs of the extra patients. Not enough had been done to prepare Northwick Park Hospital for the surge, and funding and staff numbers were nowhere near enough to handle the number of people coming through.
The NHS is already in crisis over long-term funding cuts imposed by the Government, and the plans for further cuts to hospital services are a serious threat to the health of the public, health campaigners told the meeting.
Butt said that Brent Council had not accepted the STP and has demanded assurances on funding and risks from the Government before it could be agreed. Brent Council is currently considering their next steps relating to the plans covering the borough.
At the Health and Wellbeing Board on Tuesday Cllr Krupesh Hirani said that it was the issue of the adequacy of out of hospital services that kept him awake at night.
There is an Extraordinary Meeting of the Governing Body of
the Brent Clinical Commissioning Group at noon-1.30pm on Wednesday 14th
December at the Boardroom Wembley Centre for Health and Care. The
meeting is open to the public and 30 minutes has been allocated to questions
from the public.
The meeting is about the business case for Shaping a
Healthier Future and the CCG consider this essential for ‘delivering’
the controversial NW London Sustainability and Transformation Plan. Cllr
Krupesh Hirani confirmed in the Brent and Kilburn Times today that Brent
Council intends to sign the STP despite the fact that neighbouring Ealing and
Hammersmith and Fulham councils have refused to do so.
As usual the documents are massive, jargon ridden and with
enough acronyms to fill Wembley Stadium.
Anyone who manages to plough through them AND understand
them deserves an honorary degree.
Those who think that the STP, though argued on the
basis of benefits to patients, is really a cover for cuts may be interested in
the Strategic Outline Case for investment to eventually save money:
For trusts under the ‘comparator’ scenario, where no commissioner QIPP is assumed to be delivered
and with business-as-usual CIP delivery, all our provider trusts will be in financial deficit, with a
combined deficit of £114m at 2024/25. However, if commissioner QIPP were delivered, trusts’ I&E
would improve to a combined deficit of £18m as additional CIPs can be achieved (termed the ‘SaHF
scenario before reconfiguration). The CCG QIPP delivery is dependent in part on the building of the
hubs, which is why it is not included in the ‘comparator’. If we receive the capital funding we are
requesting, the trusts’ financial projections demonstrate that all trusts will have a sustainable I&E
surplus position of £27.6m at 2024/25, with the reconfiguration contributing a c£50m benefit (termed
the ‘SaHF scenario after reconfiguration’).
Currently the trusts are running in-year deficits which would require an estimated cash support of
£1.1bn over the next 10 years (and continue thereafter), which would reduce to £0.5bn under the
‘SaHF scenario before reconfiguration’ (where additional CIPs are delivered, partly due to hub
investment to enable QIPP delivery). Under the SOC part 1 option (‘SaHF scenario after
reconfiguration’), the cash deficit support in the 10-year period would reduce further to £0.4bn and are
eliminated post reconfiguration.
If the capital investment were funded by loans, two of the trusts would have a below target Financial
Sustainability Risk Rating (FSRR) and be unable to meet the loan repayments. As the loan funding
scenario is unaffordable from a liquidity perspective, we have explored two further scenarios and have
concluded that our preferred option is for Public Dividend Capital (PDC) funding, and an accelerated
timeline.
We have also demonstrated that the case is affordable under a range of scenarios by conducting
sensitivity analyses.
This is the Brent Cabinet decision as recorded in the minutes of the October 24th Cabinet meeting:
1.Cabinet
noted the STP submission for North West London.
2.Cabinet
welcomed the principles adopted within the STP of prevention, out of hospital care, dealing with the social care
funding gap and the need to work across the public sector to maximise benefits
from changes to the NHS and other public sector estate.
3.Cabinet
noted that the STP will need formal sign off by the end of December and that
between October and December the following issues need to be clarified both
within the submission and through other NHS processes, in order for
the council to give full support for the plan:
a.That
the IMBC on which delivery area 5 is based is released, debated and understood;
b.That
the flow of monies from acute to out of hospital settings are clarified;
c.That
the specification for out of hospital settings, in particular social care, are
clarified based on an agreed model of out of hospital care;
d.That
a full risk assessment for the plan and relevant mitigations are included.
It is just not possible for me to go to every vital meeting that I advertise on Wembley Matters so I am posting this account from the Hammersmith and Fulham website of their public meeting on the NW London Sustainability and Transformation Plan. How about a similar meeting in Brent, Brent Council?
The decision by
Hammersmith & Fulham and Ealing councils to refuse ‘secretive’
hospital closure plans was backed by hundreds at a packed town hall
meeting this week.
Nearly 700 cheered and applauded the leaders of the councils as they
explained why they have refused to sign up to the local NHS
Sustainability and Transformation Plan (STP). Councils across the UK
have been asked to endorse similar plans for each region of the NHS,
before they are submitted to government for approval.
“The STP is a deeply cynical re-hash of the earlier flawed plans
which now proposes to close Charing Cross Hospital in 2021,” said Cllr
Stephen Cowan, Leader of Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
“There are no good arguments for demolishing Charing Cross or for
selling off much of the land and replacing it with an urgent care clinic
just 13 per cent the size of the hospital. That’s why this
administration will continue its fierce defence of Charing Cross and the
vital local NHS services people rely on.”
The meeting drew campaigners from across the region who have been
fighting plans to close or downgrade services at five out of the nine
hospitals in north west London.
Despite the published plans, an NHS spokesman has said: “We want to
reassure our staff, patients, local residents and partners that Charing
Cross is not closing and that there will be no reduction in the
hospital’s A&E and wider services during the lifetime of the STP,
which runs until April 2021.”
Anne Drinkell, of the Save our Hospitals campaign, said: “This is a
cuts and closures programme. We’re not saying we want no change. But
objectively there’s already not enough capacity in our local hospital so
closing more services would be unsafe.”
Campaigners were united in condemning the tactics being used to force
through drastic reductions in local health services secretively and
without public consultation.
The NHS has pressured councils to approve STPs by linking it to the
release of vital government cash needed to keep councils’ social care
services from collapsing under ever-rising demand.
But Cllr Julian Bell, Leader of Ealing Council, said: “The NHS tried
to bounce us into signing the STP. They tried to get us to agree to the
STP on the basis of a two-page summary and they told us we didn’t need
to see the full document. We insisted, but it didn’t arrive until they
day before we were meant to sign it. And once we finally saw what was in
it, we understood why. There was no way on earth I was going to sign up
to those plans.”
Dr David Wingfield, chairman of the Hammersmith and Fulham GP
Federation, suggested the STP was not equipped to tackle the health and
social care problems facing the borough. He offered to form a ‘grand
alliance’ between GPs, councillors and members of the community to
confront local healthcare challenges.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council has announced plans for legal action against the NW London Sustainability and Transformation Plan which aims to close first Ealing then Charing Cross Hospitals. Hammersmith & Fulhan and Ealing Councils are the first to refuse to sign off the STP - action we need replicated across England. In a step forward last Tuesday Hounslow Council passed a motion with all party support to retain acute services at Ealing and Charing Cross and a statement was signed by 5 councils including Harrow and Brent condemning the closure plan.The public meeting called by Hammersmith & Fulham Council tomorrow is vital in demonstrating the scale of public opposition and highlighting the need to protect local health services.
Brent Council has announced the appointment of a new Director of Human Resources. This is the post currently held on an interim basis by Mildred Phillips, who took over when Cara Davani left the Council. Presumably Phillips will now revert to her previous deputy role.
David Veale is expected to take up the post in July. He is currently the Assistant Director of Human Resources and Organisational Development in Ealing, a post he has held for 4 years. Mildred Phillips was notable by her absence at the recent Scrutiny Committee where Michael Pavey protested that the report on progress on his HR Review, that she had written, had not been submitted to him for approval prior to publication. Pavey remarked at Scrutiny that the report felt like 'a ceremonial closing of the Pavey Review' he went on to say, 'as the actions are ticked off, I have a lingering concern that we will lose the imperative which launched this [review] process in the first place. It will be David Veale's job to ensure that imperative is not lost and that the battle for racial equality and an end to bullying and harassment becomes a top priority in practical terms for Brent Council. Veales has had experience of a dysfunctional HR department at Ealing where this was said about the department LINK:
In 2006 an Audit Commission report painted a gloomy picture of the HR
function at Ealing Council. The troubled department was failing to
provide a good HR service to the organisation and bringing little added
value. The team was feeling demotivated, overworked and unproductive
following an intense period of restructuring. With so much on their
plates, team members had lost sight of the big picture. A series of
rapid changes in leadership, with five HR directors in almost as many
years, had also lowered morale. The structure of the senior HR team
meant that the five key senior leaders, each responsible for a vital HR
function, worked in isolation. To improve the service, the senior HR team needed to be re-energised
and prepared for further change. Recognising this, Hilary Jeanes, the
interim HR director at the time, appointed Paul Fairhurst and some of
his colleagues from the Institute for Employment Studies to conduct a
bespoke strengths-focused coaching scheme for the HR leadership team.
The aim was to support the senior leaders through this difficult time,
rebuild their confidence and help develop them as managers and
inspirational leaders.
A six month coaching programme was instigated with some sessions off-site, away from the frontline: David Veale working Ealing HR consultancy at the time said in his evaluation of the programme:
The programme gave me a clear understanding of my strengths and the
activities I enjoy doing at work, as well as those I find more
challenging. It helped me step back from difficult situations and view
them more objectively. I feel much more confident, and as a team we are
less stressed, less reactive and more focused on outcomes.
The case study concluded: Lessons learned:
Ignoring weaknesses turns them into problems. Focus on your
strengths, and make sure you know the strengths of those around you.
Overworked, exhausted staff need thinking space, but a re-energised
team can have the determination to tackle bigger challenges ahead with
enthusiasm.
Change is a constant, but preparing people for it, rather than inflicting it upon them, is well worth the investment.
It is to be hoped that these lessons and others learned in the interim will contribute to a change of culture at Brent HR. Meanwhile the 'Guinness' model of Brent Council management (white on top and black below) has been changed to some extent by the appointment of BAME candidates. Althea Loderick succeeds Stephen Hughes as Strategic Director of Resources and Amar Dave takes over from Lorraine Langham as Director for Regeneration and Environment.
Kei has been living
with the thousands of evacuees still living in temporary accommodation 5 years
after the Fukushima-Daiichi Nuclear Power plant disaster in Japan. Kei will
speak about the impact of the disaster and the dangers imposed by nuclear power
Thursday 4 February
7.00pm for 7.30pm
The
Forester pub (upstairs function room) Leighton Road, West Ealing W13 9EP
Brent Patient Voice welcomes the findings of the
Mansfield Report. BPV Chair, Robin Sharp, said: “We are pleased that Mansfield
endorses the extensive evidence that we and many other independent people
submitted. Why has the NHS greeted it with silence?”
The Report of the Independent Healthcare
Commission for North West London under Michael Mansfield QC was published on 2nd
December. It brings no comfort for the NHS chiefs in our area – and none for
patients either.
The Report says that the Shaping a Healthier
Future programme is “deeply flawed”. Launching the Report Michael Mansfield
said that the planned reforms provide “no realistic prospect of achieving good
quality accessible healthcare for all and any further implementation is likely
to exacerbate a deteriorating situation.”
The Commission calls for the programme to be
halted, for the decisions to close the A&E Department at Central
Middlesex Hospital and the Maternity Unit at Ealing Hospital to be reversed,
for the increasing size of the population in NW London to be properly
established and factored into future planning, for the so-called
“Implementation Business Case” to be published and for there to be a new public
consultation on the plans which they believe to have changed significantly.
They suggest that the local authorities should consider seeking judicial review
if the NHS press ahead with the programme in current circumstances.
However we are deeply disappointed that neither
the eminence of Michael Mansfield nor the extent of public concern revealed by
the evidence have moved the NHS authorities responsible for Shaping a
Healthier Future to be sensibly open about the current state of the
programme or its likely costs.
Commenting further, Robin Sharp said “Our
fundamental criticism of the whole initiative is that the NHS in NW London has
broken its promise in the consultation document that out of hospital services
will be in place before changes are made to hospital-based services. Two
A&Es and one Maternity unit have closed. Where are the openings to take
their place?”
In order to be constructive we propose:
·
That the NHS should publish an intelligible version of the Implementation
Business Plan for Shaping as it now stands, with outline costs, as is
normal for any major public project;
·
That full consideration of the future of Central Middlesex Hospital be resumed,
including the option of restoring its acute status with a fully-functioning
A&E, bearing in mind the inadequacy of a stand-alone Urgent Care Centre
there and the continuing intolerable situation at Northwick Park;
·
That Council officers be instructed to work with GLA statisticians to provide
reliable estimates of the size of the current Brent population and growth
rates, taking account of births, deaths, net migration and planned major
developments;
·
That in collaboration with all partners Brent CGG produce a clear account of
their Out of Hospital Strategy, including the role of the new GP networks, to
restore confidence in this vital missing element of the Shaping programme;
·
That full and meaningful patient consultation and involvement should be
integral to all future consideration of these proposals.
The Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) is consulting on the Integrated Impact Assessment (IIA) Scoping Report for the forthcoming OPDC Local Plan.This huge development covers parts of the London boroughs of Ealing, Brent and Hammersmith and Fulham and includes issues concerning housing, transportation, air quality, sustainability, health and the local economy.
The IIA Scoping Report is now out for consultation and available for download from OPDC’s website.LINK
OPDC is also seeking comments on the Scoping Report from the public and other stakeholders.
Hard copies will be made available at the address below.
Please note all comments, suggestions and responses should reach OPDC by 5pm 9th October 2015 and be sent by email to info@opdc.london.gov.uk or by letter to:
Local Plan IIA Scoping Report Consultation
Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation
City Hall, The Queen's Walk,
London SE1 2AA
This extract gives a flavour of the ground to be covered:
OBJECTIVES
1.To
enhance the built environment and encourage ‘place-making’
2.To
optimise the efficient use of land through increased development densities and
building heights, where appropriate
3.Maximise
the reuse of previously developed land and existing buildings, including the
remediation of contaminated land
4.Minimise
the need to travel and improve accessibility for all users by public and non-
motorised transportation methods
5.Improve
access to well designed, well-located, market, affordable and inclusive housing
of a range of types and tenures, to meet identified local needs
6.Improve
climate change adaptation and mitigation, including minimising the risk of
flooding and addressing the heat island effect
7.To
minimise contributions to climate change through greater energy efficiency,
generation and storage; and to reduce reliance on natural resources including
fossil fuels for transport, heating and energy
8.To
minimise production of waste across all sectors in the plan area, maximise
efficiencies for transporting waste and increasing rates of re-use, recycling
and recovery rates as well as composting of all green waste
9.Improve
the quality of the water environment
10.Create
and enhance biodiversity and the diversity of habitats across the area and its
surroundings
11.To
minimise air, noise and light pollution, particularly for vulnerable groups
12.To
conserve and, where appropriate, enhance, cultural heritage
13.Increase
community cohesion and reduce social exclusion
14.Improve
safety and reduce crime and the fear of crime
15.Maximise
the health and wellbeing of the population, reduce inequalities in health and
promote healthy living
16.To
improve the education and skills levels of all members of the population,
particularly vulnerable groups
17.Maximise
the social and economic wellbeing of the population and improve access to
employment and training
18.To encourage inward investment alongside
investment within existing communities, to create sustainable economic growth.
